Book Review: Think & Grow Rich

If only thinking would have made us rich, we all would have been millionaires. Unfortunately, we are not!

This book is the perfect example of the quote, “We shouldn’t judge a book by its cover”. The word ‘rich’ here is used metaphorically i.e. rich in terms of quality of life and thought process.

Title: Think & Grow Rich

Author: Napoleon Hill

Publisher: Penguin Random House India, first published in 1937

Genre: Self-help

Pages: 266

Price: Available below 150/- on Flipkart and Amazon

The book starts by quoting several incidents mostly from the lives of Thomas A. Edison and Henry Ford, subtle dialogues and their success stories. The first few chapters discuss entrepreneurship ideas about how to make money and succeed in life whereas, after that, the book becomes more philosophical; talking about several aspects related to life. One of the central concerns of every self-help book is ‘quality living’, which resonates here too. Let’s take a look at the content page.

As evident from the content page, the book has a chapter on each of the issues we feel caught and eventually struggle to come out of. It’s easy to shuffle among the chapters and sub-chapters due to clear demarcation. One can also jump directly to the chapters they’re interested in, as they aren’t interrelated. Instead of paragraphs, the content within the chapters has been illustrated in bullet points, thus, increasing its grasping power. At several points, this book invites you to participate in the discussion, contemplate, and introspect, what you’ve been doing wrong all these days. The chapter ‘The Mystery of Sex Transmutation’, according to me, is quite relevant to the youths of today as it talks about channelling the sex energy toward doing something worthwhile.

However, the two major problems with self-help books are that they either become too philosophical or many a time, outdated. Human problems aren’t constant. It changes with the changing scenario. The issues faced by the author while writing the book (here 1937) may not align with the contemporary situation. On a scale of 10, I bestow 8 to the former and 7 to the latter. Also, one of the questions I always ask a book with ‘a title’ like this is, “Is money really a marker of quality life”, as we’re always trying to relate it to earning loads of money. There are also several theories which say that running after money robs you of your peace. I leave these questions to you so that when you read the book, you can introspect.

Nonetheless, this book is one of the must-reads for those who are struggling to balance their finances and lead a quality of life!

©Shashank